Intra-stakeholder alliances in plant-closing decisions: A stakeholder theory approach

Transformative social innovation in developing and emerging ecosystems: a configurational examination

Despite the literature on social innovation (SI) in ecosystems growing considerably in recent years, what makes an ecosystem a facilitator for transformative SI remains unexamined, particularly indeveloping and emerging countries. Our research aims to fill this literature gap by determining which combination of characteristics—stemming from stakeholder theory and knowledge management–turns local smallholder coffee farmers in developing and emerging producing countries into autonomous and empowered partners and catalysts for spreading SI initiatives locally. We adopt a configurational approach using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis of 18 SI projects that coffee MNEs, nongovernmental organizations, and institutions have undertaken to favor such an egalitarian value co-creation with local stakeholders. We demonstrate that stakeholder empowerment, cooperative strategic posturing, knowledge transfer, and local knowledge exchange are necessary conditions within the ecosystem to create local autonomy as an antecedent for transformative SI. The novelty in our approach lies in proposing a shift from a pure firm-centric perspective based on stakeholder dependence to a more participatory relational perspective that entails lower-power stakeholders’ interdependence and collaboration for autonomous decision-making, thereby advancing fresh thinking on stakeholder and knowledge management applied to SI in developing and emerging contexts. We also propose practical suggestions to deal with stakeholder power’s imbalances, which might limit the ecosystems’ adaptation toward transformative SI.

The Influence of Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Ethics on Brand Fidelity: The Importance of Brand Love and Brand Attitude

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and business ethics are perceived as distinct constructs by the consumer, although research from this perspective is scarce. Thus, the objective of this study is to investigate the impact of CSR and business ethics on brand fidelity. A theoretical review of CSR, business ethics, brand attitude, brand love, and brand fidelity was undertaken. From these constructs, a theoretical model was proposed, conducting an empirical study with a sample of 559 North American respondents. Through the statistical treatment of data with PLS-SEM, it was demonstrated that business ethics and CSR exert an indirect positive effect on brand fidelity, with relationships mediated by brand love. In turn, brand attitude exerts an indirect effect on brand fidelity, through the mediation of brand love. Based on the results, this study contributes to the approach of CSR and business ethics as distinct constructs and to the consolidation of the brand fidelity construct and its relationships. For management, this study helps organizations to perceive CSR and business ethics as important allies in a brand’s strategy. We conclude that although CSR remains important, customers value business ethics as a critical factor in their perceptions of the brand, contributing more strongly to brand fidelity.

Sustainability and Tourism Marketing: A Bibliometric Analysis of Publications between 1997 and 2020 Using VOSviewer Software

Several studies have empirically explored the association between practices in sustainable tourism and their impact on tourism marketing. However, bibliometric studies that organize the production in this field are still scarce. The objective of this study is thus to provide a bibliometric analysis of research on sustainable practices in tourism related to marketing, identifying the state of the art, trends and other indicators, by monitoring the articles published on the Web of Science (WoS) platform. A sample of 694 materials was obtained. The data were processed and the results graphically illustrated using the VOSviewer software. The study analyzed the simultaneous occurrence of publications by year, keyword trends, cocitations, bibliographic coupling and analysis of coauthorship, countries and institutions, and indicates that the literature on tourism sustainability issues in the field of tourism marketing is growing at a quick pace; merely five papers accounted for more than 2193 citations, but there are several prolific authors. Of the 694 sources included in the review, the most important ones published 40.34% of the papers; Spain is the leading country in this topic. This research provides insight about the state of the art and identifies gaps and research opportunities in sustainability and tourism marketing.

The Role of Social Media in Intrastakeholder Strategies to Influence Decision Making in a UK Infrastructure Megaproject: Crossrail 2

This article examines the role of social media in public stakeholder and intrastakeholder group strategies to influence decision making in the consultation stage of UK infrastructure megaprojects. The context is the consultation process on the construction of a new Crossrail 2 station in Chelsea, London, where there is resistance. Analysis of social media communication by the affected public groups and interviews with the opposing group shows different intragroup concerns, with stakeholders developing a strong identity enabled by social media. To reduce perceived lack of responsiveness, we recommend that project managers harness social media marketing principles for ongoing relationship building.